Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion, says that U.S. athletes face more “racism” than ever.
The 30-year-old tennis star told USA Today that America is still a bad place for athletes.
“Yes, it’s obviously been a problem my entire career. It has never stopped. If anything, it’s only gotten worse,” she told the paper on Monday.
Stephens was commenting on software the French Open implemented to screen out hateful comments online. But she says that such online protections aren’t really working for her.
Sloane Stephens of the United States reacts against Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic in her first-round match on Day Two of Roland Garros on May 29, 2023, in Paris, France (Robert Prange/Getty Images)
“I did hear about the software. I have not used it,” she said via USA Today. “I have a lot of obvious keywords banned on Instagram and all of these things, but that doesn’t stop someone from just typing in an asterisk or typing it in a different way, which obviously software most of the time doesn’t catch.”
The tennis player also claimed that there have been “investigations” into threats made against her.
“I mean, obviously when there is FBI investigations going on with what people are saying to you online, it’s very serious,” she claimed.
“Obviously it’s been something that I have dealt with my whole career,” she continued. “I think that, like I said, it’s only continued to get worse, and people online have the free rein to say and do whatever they want behind fake pages, which is obviously very troublesome.”
Sloane Stephens of the United States walks onto the court to play against Nadia Podoroska of Argentina in the first round on Day Three of the Internazionali BNL D’Italia at Foro Italico on May 10, 2023, in Rome, Italy (Robert Prange/Getty Images.
“It’s something I have had to deal with my whole career and something I will continue to deal with, I’m sure. That’s that,” she said.
Stephens is hoping to win her first title at the 12th French Open. The closest she’s gotten was the finals in 2018. She will face Varvara Gracheva in round two this week. Stephens is currently ranked 30 to Gracheva’s 41 in the WTA ratings.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook at: facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Huston, or Truth Social @WarnerToddHuston